The siege of Dale & Erebor
by aureastus
Summary: It is the third age, around the time Frodo is taken to Cirith Ungol, and this tells of the (mostly canon) war in the north, of course this story will be adding more detail to the war.
1. The bells were ringing

** Far to the north, while the men of Rohan and Gondor were fighting their own battles, their is a lesser known battle that took place, but was just as important, a battle between dwarves and men, against the terrible Easterlings of Rhun. This is an account of a dwarven scribe of that tale.**

**-March 17, 3019 of the Third age-**

It was a sun-filled morning in the grand splendor of Erebor, Dale was prospering as always, having its riches double in the last few years, and the long lake was just finishing up delivering their fish to the gates of the Lonely Mountain, trade once more flowing through the three kingdoms. The patrols around the territory were still strong and Dain and Brand II were in a meeting in Dale. Since the Battle of Five armies the gold was split between Erebor, Dale, Esgaroth and Mirkwood. Thranduil and his kingdom had resumed a grudgingly accepted alliance between the two races, and the Northmen had once more had wine from the Woodland realm and Weapons from Erebor. All the while Durin's folk had in a way prospered, their numbers were growing once more and they now had good control over the north.

When the first noise was heard it was a ginormous rumble across the land, The golden colored armor from Rhun was clear, they came for war, the summons from Sauron had not gone unheeded, after Sauron was denied, he quickly sought out revenge. So he sent the armies of Rhun forth to lay waste to the free peoples. Among their ranks were catapults, Ballista, and a battering ram. Terrible things in that army, their numbers so big it cannot be counted in numbers. The dwarves of Erebor quickly sent out Ravens to the Iron Hills and Esgaroth to tell them what was going on, and begging for reinforcements. Dain quickly ran back to Erebor with his guard after telling Brand to ready his forces for war, so there was a great noise was heard as the forges of men sprung up in a hurry, making longswords and longbows all of brilliant creation, their numbers were large for the size of the city, and they marched with haste towards the east wall, where the army was approaching from. Then the first catapult launched, The sphere of stone crashed into one of the towers of Dale, smashing it to pieces. They had approached from the east, just avoiding the sights of the Iron Hills and made their way to the valley. The men of Dale quickly sent down rocks from catapults and arrows from their longbows, but it was not enough, for what men they could bring down more just took their place, their catapults kept firing as if they were limitless on rocks. Most flew past and landed somewhere unimportant, but some crashed into Towers, houses, and the wall. It was weakening fast, and it would be just a matter of time before those walls came crashing down and the hoard of men pouring through, they could not hold long after that. Brand gathered his forces, with hope that the warriors from Esgaroth would arrive soon. Rock upon rock they hurled towards the nearly defenseless city. But not all was lost, the mounted crossbows of Dale provided quick return of fire towards the attacking armies of gold. It appeared that they were at a stalemate, but the rocks of Rhun were hard and launched with fury and the walls soon came crashing down with a noise like an earthquake. Looks of dread shone on the faces of the men of Dale, and they quickly formed a phalanx wall to cover the hole in the wall of the city, but these were no dwarves, they had neither the might nor the numbers to hold against a full blown charge from the Easterlings. But the formation never was tested, for at the last moment the warriors from Esgaroth charged the ranks of the Easterlings, cushioning the impact and letting the Dalesmen form ranks. The men of the lake came upon them with swords and pikes and all they could prepare in the short time they had. The Easterlings shock did not last long, for their morale was high, for Saurn had filled them with confidince that they would win over Gondor and Rohan and send reinforcements north if need be. They counter-attacked with vigorous fury, tearing apart the ranks of the lakemen, and they barely escaped with half the men they started with. The fishermen were not trained as well as the men of Dale, and so could not contend with the battle hardened warriors of Rhun. The men of Dale were different, they had better weapons for living so close to Erebor, trained and battle ready by the dwarves they charged along with the remaining men of Esgaroth, and temporarily giving a dent in the opposing armies front, but it was not enough, and they soon retreated towards the heart of the city.

**-End day 1-**

So how do you like me writing a bit larger chapters?


	2. Lu! Lu! Lu!

**(Please note that the end of day 1 was when the Men of Dale and Esgaroth were retreating to Erebor.)**

**-March 18 &amp; 19 3019-**

The crimson red sun rose to find an army retreating inside the inner wall and an army in gold chasing after them. The morale of the Northmen was very weak, their numbers were just over half of what it had been after a full day of fighting. Now they were about to be overrun before they ever even reached the walls. But at their darkest hour, a horn blew in the deep, a loud and air piercing horn of the dwarves that seemed to shake the very land around them. Dain! He had come to their aid at last. Indeed he did, for the dwarves had watched their allies get slaughtered on the first day, and were filled with a raging fury. Suddenly the golden gates of Erebor sprung open, and armies clad in iron, steel, and many other things sprung forth, pouring out of Erebor with their eyes full of hate. Crossbowmen fired from the gates and bowmen fired from the ground, the Easterlings had fear in their eyes for just a moment before splitting into two groups, one staying in Dale and one charging forward to meet the dwarves. The dwarves lowered their first line of pikes, then a sudden _clash! _As pike hit metal and the two armies collided, this of course reinvigorated the morale of the Northmen, and they pushed the Easterlings back towards the outside the inner walls, the men locked shields and smashed into the easterlings, and toppeling many of them. The dwarves, being heavily trained, hacked down upon the Rhunnic people. At the head of the army rode Dain II Ironfoot on a large ram. The cavalry of the dwarves charged into the flanks, pushing them back once more. Once again all the easterlings were in Dale, Dwarves for the most part fighting on the outskirts of the city, and the Northmen battling in heart of Dale. Their forces were evenly matched, Dain and Brand together made a killing machine, each one protecting the other, Dain with his double bladed Red axe and hammer strapped to his back, and Brand with his longsword and A bow across his shoulder. No one could touch them, and Easterling and Dwarf alike feared them as a team. But the men were tiring, the Easterlings morale was as strong as their armor, and they would fight until the very last man. The men and dwarves were once and for all, forced to retreat. The battle on the plains was long and bloody, with axe meeting sword and bow meeting spear, the free peoples were outnumbered, but not outmatched. With a war cry the dwarves formed a shield wall faster than seemed possible, spears protruding from the holes, and waited for the attack to come. Just before the attack came, arrows flew over the dwarves, hitting the easterlings dead on the mark, softening the blow. When they hit the wall, it held strong, and soon after they broke, and the dwarves charged spears first, skewering the first lines and damaging the second. Soon after they drew their broadswords and charged, and many chants of **Baruk Khazâd! Khazâd ai-mênu!** Were heard, morale once again rising for the free peoples, the majority of the dwarves had been pulled back inside to renew strength, and to have a cushion if they broke through. The remaining dwarves gave another shout, and they hit the Easterlings head on. The Easterlings were taken aback, but the dwarves couldnt hold out, and Dain did something worthy of remembrance that day. He ordered the faint of heart and the wounded inside (Over half of his men, which were already low in number.) and king Brand did the same, then ordered the doors to be shut. King Brand of Dale and King Dain of Durin's folk, had both just put the lives of their men above themselves. The men and dwarves both silently mourned as they stood one last time together. The entire time they were battling in front of the gates, there was a chant heard from the dwarves and even some men:

**Urus ni buzra!**

**Arrâs talbabi fillumâ!**

**Ugrûd tashniki kurdumâ!**

**Lu! Lu! Lu!**

The army braced, the Northmen and Durin's folk protecting their kings. Spears and axes skewering any who dare come near, and the two kings were firing shot after shot. But alas, the enemy broke through, and after a long fight Brand was struck in the side by an Easterlings axe, and he fell, mortally wounded. Dain let out a cry, and stood before the body of his long time friend and ally, and he swung at the men of Rhun, gathering a pile of bodies around him. The few remaining men were silently chanting the same phrase:

**"Ugrûd tashniki kurdumâ, Ugrûd tashniki kurdumâ, Lu, Lu,"** In a sorrow-filled tone.

Dain was fighting well, his red axe long since broken, he was swinging away with his hammer, hitting easterling after easterling, but even the greatest heroes must fall, and an arrow struck Dain in the side. But he kept swinging, becoming if anything even more of a killing machine until finally an arrow reached his heart, then he fell next to Brand II, and the king of Durin's folk, and the king of Dale, lay still once more.

**"Lu... Lu... Lu..."**

(AN: Translations to the chants:

Fire in the deep!_ Urus ni buzra!  
Flames lick our skin!_ Arrâs talbabi fillumâ!  
Fear rips our heart!_ Ugrûd tashniki kurdumâ!  
No! No! No!_ Lu! Lu! Lu!)

No...No...No... Lu...Lu...Lu...


End file.
